1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to television broadcasting, and in particular to the television broadcasting of sports events from a system of instrumented sports paraphernalia on the playing fields/rinks of sports stadiums.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Many sports are played in sports venues including stadiums, arenas etc. Examples of these sports are football, baseball and ice hockey. Football, baseball and ice hockey are televised in these venues for entertaining TV viewing audiences, training players; and for doing instant replays.
A prior art system for capturing video and audio of these sporting events within these venues involves positioning video cameras at ground, roof and balcony locations within the sporting arena or sports stadium, around the periphery of the sporting event and outside of the actual playing field. U.S. Pat. No. 8,194,135 (James) and U.S. Pat. No. 8,184,169 (Ortiz) and U.S. Pat. No. 8,059,152 (daCosta) and U.S. Pat. No. 8,013,899 (Gillard) and U.S. Pat. No. 7,376,388 (Ortiz) and U.S. Pat. No. 7,030,906 (Auffret) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,934,510 (Katayama) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,873,355 (Thompson) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,681,398 (Verna)) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,416,513 (Morisaki) are examples. Another prior art system for capturing video and audio of these sporting events involves mounting cameras at various mobile or fixed overhead positions on cable rails deployed over the playing field. U.S. Pat. No. 8,199,197 (Bennett) and U.S. Pat. No. 7,239,106 (Rodnunsky) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,568,189 (Kneller) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,710,819 (Brown) are examples. Yet another prior art system for capturing video and audio of these sporting events involves the use of hand held cameras carried around the periphery of the sporting event and outside of the actual playing field. U.S. Pat. No. 7,128,419 (Harris) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,017,168 (Brown) are examples. Still yet another prior art system for capturing video and audio of these sporting events involves cameras mounted on blimps deployed in the air space above the playing field. U.S. Pat. No. 7,173,649 (Shannon) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,426,476 (Fussell) are examples. Other prior art systems for capturing video and audio of these sporting events involve cameras mounted on helmets and caps used by the players on the playing field. U.S. Pat. No. 6,819,354 (Foster) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,704,044 (Foster)) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,028,627 (Helmsderfer) are examples. Also, in prior art fields unrelated to television sports broadcasting, cameras have been carried aloft by sport's projectiles et al, where the cameras are used and specifically adapted to measure the path of travel of the projectiles in their flight. These projectiles concentrate on getting pictures without sound, while the projectiles are in the air, for the purpose of determining the path of the projectile. U.S. Pat. No. 6,833,849 (Kurokawa) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,995,787 (Adams) and U.S. Pat. No. 7,335,116 (Petrov) and U.S. Pat. No. 7,791,808 (French) and U.S. Pat. No. 8,085,188 (Tuxen) are examples. Projectiles in the prior art do not address the needs of broadcast television for the TV viewing audience.
It should be noted that an important consideration in meeting the needs of televising sporting events is to routinely provide high quality entertaining pictures and sounds to the TV viewing audience which contain significant aspects of the game. Prior art projectiles like those cited above have not been designed or intended or made practical or useful as suitable platforms from which to televise sporting events.